House, machine shed destroyed in Saturday fires

Wednesday

Dec 26, 2012 at 11:30 AMDec 26, 2012 at 11:34 AM

A home and a machine shed full of equipment were destroyed in separate fires in the area Saturday.A fire believed caused by a short in the electric stove around 1:30 p.m. Saturday destroyed an older house in rural Cornell, located along County Road 3000 North.The occupant said he was heating oil for deep-frying, left the room and when he came back, fire was running up a kitchen wall and smoke detectors were activated. The occupant called 911 and the Cornell Fire Department responded.According to Cornell Volunteer Fire Chief Steve Ruddy, the home is a total loss and there were no injuries reported. Firemen at the scene had to use caution, as there was three pounds of gunpowder and plentiful ammunition inside the home, as some of the occupants practice target shooting and they reload their own shells in the home.Reading and Allen townships, Long Point, Dwight, Odell and Pontiac fire departments assisted Cornell.Later Saturday afternoon, a fire near Swygert caused heavy damage to an outbuilding.According to the Pontiac Fire Department, they responded to the blaze at 5:13 p.m. at Joe Burton Trucking. The fire originated in the back of the building, although no cause has been identified.There were no injuries reported and the scene was cleared at 8:16 p.m.A semi-tractor, some four-wheelers, a side-by-side four-wheeler, shop equipment and tools were all lost in the blaze.Saunemin, Cullom, Fairbury and Odell fire departments assisted Pontiac, while Cornell and Flanagan manned the Pontiac station.